If he arrives alone, he is to leave alone; if he arrives with[a] a wife, his wife is to leave with him. If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children belong to her master, and the man must leave alone.

“But if the slave declares: ‘I love my master, my wife, and my children; I do not want to leave as a free man,’(A) his master is to bring him to the judges[b] and then bring him to the door or doorpost. His master must pierce his ear with an awl, and he will serve his master for life.

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Footnotes

  1. Exodus 21:3 Lit he is the husband of
  2. Exodus 21:6 Or to God; that is, to His sanctuary or court

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